1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an oil pump for a vehicle with a pump body that is secured to a rear cover of a transaxle case and a vehicle with the oil pump.
2. Description of Related Art
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-70753 (JP 2002-70753 A), the oil pump for a vehicle is disposed, for example, at an input side of a transaxle. The oil pump for a vehicle disclosed in JP 2002-70753 A includes a driven gear, a drive gear that engages the driven gear, and a pump chamber that houses the driven gear and the drive gear.
Some oil pumps of this kind are disposed on the opposite side of the input side of the transaxle, that is, on a rear cover side of the transaxle case. Such an oil pump for a vehicle includes, for example, a pump chamber formed between the rear cover and a pump body secured to the rear cover. Additionally, the oil pump includes the driven gear and the drive gear that engages the driven gear. The pump chamber houses the driven gear and the drive gear.
The above-described oil pump for a vehicle has a two-layer structure that includes the rear cover and the pump body. Between the rear cover of the transaxle case and the pump body, the pump chamber is formed. This limits flexibility in disposing an oil passage between the rear cover and the pump body. Accordingly, it may require providing an independent oil passage (that is, an additional oil passage) with the rear cover or the pump body. If the independent oil passage is provided with the rear cover or the pump body, for example, the rear cover or the pump body may increase in production cost.